I don't believe that evil exists.
At least, not in the way that word typically is used, as someone or something with wholly negative qualities that border, if not actually inhabit, a dualistic metaphysical realm where Good is inherently opposed to Evil as opposite cosmic forces.
I do believe that sometimes people do really bad things. Not because they are evil. Because they are people with both the capability and the intention to do those bad things.
Murder. Rape. Torture. Whether those who carry out horrendous acts like these do so of their free will, or via deterministic causes, doesn't affect the pain and suffering they inflict on their fellow humans.
Hitler frequently is cited as the epitome of evil, or as I prefer, of acting really badly.
Yesterday the Salon discussion group my wife and I have belonged to for many years held our monthly meeting at the home of one of our members. Politically we all lean in the leftward direction, so Donald Trump featured prominently in our conversing.
Not in a positive way, of course, though I did say that I hoped Trump would find a way to save TikTok, something I wrote about on my Salem Political Snark blog last night. And several of us noted that it made sense to deport undocumented migrants to the United States who have committed serious crimes.
After we'd talked quite a bit about the danger Trump poses to our country and the world during his second term as president (which begins tomorrow), a woman who was a young child in Germany during World War II said:
A German friend who I keep in touch with told me, "If Germany survived Hitler, the United States will survive Trump."
Well, while I appreciated the attempt to assuage my concerns about Trump, that statement didn't do much to reassure me. I replied with, "But millions of Germans died in World War II along with six million Jews; though Germany survived Hitler, those people didn't."
Some Googling just revealed that Germany had 5,553,000 military deaths in World War II and 6,600,000-8,800,000 combined civilian and military deaths -- which I assume doesn't include the 6,000,000 Jews killed in concentration camps.
Yes, Germany now is a prosperous democracy. That's great.
However, the blunt fact remains that an autocratic ruler, Hitler, did tremendous damage to Germany and the entire world. I understand the desire to look upon history as being on a long-term positive course, but a more realistic view is that history can take a dark turn lasting hundreds of years in which human progress toward prosperity, democracy, and equality first stalls, then reverses.
History, it often is said, is written by the winners.
Though I'm no expert in the history of World War II, my understanding is that absent some blunders made by Hitler (such as invading Russia, and an inability to construct an atomic bomb), the Axis could have won the war -- obviously with far-reaching negative consequences. Our history books now would look upon Hitler with admiration, not criticism.
On a personal level, we humans seem to have a bias toward negativity, since evolution primed us to see danger lurking even where it wasn't, given that a single failure to recognize a mortal threat would leave a prehistoric human dead, while reacting to unreal threats just ended up being a waste of time.
However, when it comes to long-term historic trends, I sense that nowadays most people (including me, usually) have a bias toward seeing things steadily improving, albeit with inescapable temporary downturns along the Way of Progress.
I hope that outlook is correct. But I suspect that it isn't. The Dark Ages lasted a long time in medieval Europe. The Renaissance eventually occurred, thankfully. Now we live in times that are much more fast-moving, volatile, and unpredictable.
Hopefully the United States will survive the next four years of another Trump presidency. There's a chance, albeit slim in my decidedly personal opinion, that my country will not only survive, but thrive.
And yet... some paragraphs from the Wikipedia page, "Adolf Hitler's rise to power," concern me, because they show how an autocrat or dictator can come to power through a democratic process, then undermine democracy in a highly scary fashion.
Hitler ran for the presidency in 1932 but was defeated by the incumbent Paul von Hindenburg; nonetheless, he achieved a strong showing of second place in both rounds. Following this, in July 1932 the Nazis became the largest party in the Reichstag, albeit short of an absolute majority. 1933 was a pivotal year for Hitler and the Nazi Party. Traditionally, the leader of the party who held the most seats in the Reichstag was appointed Chancellor.
However, President von Hindenburg was hesitant to appoint Hitler as chancellor. Following several backroom negotiations – which included industrialists, Hindenburg's son Oskar, the former chancellor Franz von Papen, and Hitler – Hindenburg acquiesced and on 30 January 1933, he formally appointed Adolf Hitler as Germany's new chancellor. Although he was chancellor, Hitler was not yet an absolute dictator.
The groundwork for the Nazi dictatorship was laid when the Reichstag was set on fire in February 1933. Asserting that the communists were behind the arson, Hitler convinced von Hindenburg to pass the Reichstag Fire Decree, which severely curtailed the liberties and rights of German citizens. Using the decree, Hitler began eliminating his political opponents.
Following its passage, Hitler began arguing for more drastic means to curtail political opposition and proposed the Enabling Act of 1933. Once enacted this law gave the German government the power to override individual rights prescribed by the constitution, and vested the Chancellor (Hitler) with emergency powers to pass and enforce laws without parliamentary oversight.
The law came into force in March and by April, Hitler held de facto dictatorial powers and used them to order the construction of the first Nazi concentration camp at Dachau for communists and other political opponents. Hitler's rise to power was completed in August 1934 when, following the death of President von Hindenburg, Hitler merged the chancellery with the presidency and became Führer, the sole leader of Germany.
In retrospect, Hitler's rise to power was aided in part by his willingness to use violence in advancing his political objectives and to recruit party members willing to do the same. The party engaged in electoral battles in which Hitler participated as a speaker and organizer. Street battles and violence also erupted between the Communists' Rotfrontkämpferbund and the Nazis' Sturmabteilung(SA).
Once the Nazi dictatorship was firmly established, the Nazis themselves created a mythology surrounding their rise to power. German propaganda described this time period as either the Kampfzeit (the time of struggle) or the Kampfjahre (years of struggle).
Urgh.
How utterly disgusting, and the epitome of the banality of real evil cowering behind delusion and pure hypocrisy..
To discuss evil and Hitler, and not mention 15 months of Biden's barbaric genocide, and Trump ending it in less than 1 day, just like Biden could have done at any moment should he not have been an "evil" genocidal maniac, just like Hitler.
Your patently delusional take on Trump's evilness and similarity to Hitler would be hilarious if it wasn't actually utterly tragic and symbolic of how REAL evil slides right through society.
God bless Trump for not being an evil genocidal scumbag, just like Biden. And God help society whilst it is full of folks who voted for Biden and yet have the nerve to say Trump is evil and like Hitler. So utterly irrelevant are the Palestinian lives he's slaughtered that they're not even considered in your analysis. THIS is the roots of genuine evil, not the cartoon caricature of evil Trump is drawn as in delusional folk's imaginations.
Disgraceful.
Posted by: manjit | January 20, 2025 at 02:54 AM
It is absolutely insane the blog owner and a few posters can talk about rationality, are so enthusiastic about APPEARING to be virtuous and trendy, and not realise the sheer horrific absurdity of likening Trump to Hitler when their candidate LITERALLY committed a genocide for 15 months and it took Trump getting into power to end it....to ignore this, or worse to perhaps even defend by for example incoherently suggesting 15 months of Biden's genocide is Trump's fault or responsibility because he ended it in less than 1 day, just like ANY US president could have done, is UTTERLY insane and delusional!
The cognitive dissonance that must be rattling around in these folks heads must be deafening as this is just so plain obvious!
Incredible nerve to actually carry on with these patent delusions in service of genocide Joe and his gang of fellow murderers less than 1 day after Trump ended Biden's genocide.
The real question is, what is cause of this demonstrably "evil" perspective that allows for genocidal apologism? Ie. What is this evil, and why is it so banal rather than the spectacular "evil" we display in our movies, books and religions.
Ah, perhaps here the 2023 movie about Hitler's holocaust, Zone of Interest, sheds some light. I haven't seen it but apparently it shows how people can commit such evil acts as genocide, right next door, whilst they continue with the banality of their own daily life, utterly dehumanising their victims. This is precisely what has happened with Palestinians and the American electorate who voted for Kamala and the democrats as they committing a genocide. It is precisely what Brian is engaged with here in this post too.
The Jewish director of Zone of Interest, Johnathan Glazer, said as much in his courageous acceptance speech for best international film at the Oscars:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-68531229
Now, there's a real, honest, difficult subject to discuss. REAL work in combatting evil..... understanding HOW you could vote for somebody literally committing a genocide, and even persist in this vile pursuit by likening the guy who ended Biden's genocide in less than 1 day to Hitler and evil without even a hint of self awareness.
This is your ACTUAL connection to Hitler and evil.
Instead, we have pathetic articles like Brian's above which insist we live in a fantasy land of cartoon criminals like Trump instead of the reality of REAL WORLD monsters like Biden.
Posted by: manjit | January 20, 2025 at 03:22 AM
Hi Brian, I am a 59 year man from India. I stumbled on your blog in 2013. At that time I was a left leaning progressive like you. I was strongly religious in my childhood. As I have been a student of mathematics and philosophy Burtrand Russel was my hero at that time , I became an atheist in 1985. In 2007 I came across "fooled by randomness" by Nassim Nicholas Taleb and read all his books. Taleb had replaced Russel from heroship.In 2014 after 7 years of Taleb, it dawned on me that Taleb is not an uncritical fan of modernity and so called enlightenment. I again had a change of heart and switched to right. It was on your blog that I came to know about John Gray's " Straw dogs". Since then I have read most of his books. Brian I admire your erudition and open mind but to me John Gray and Taleb appear closer to truth. John Gray says in Gray's anatomy " poetry and religion are more realistic guides to life." While science is great , it also does not have all the answers. Scientism is a superstition. Blind faith in reason is also a superstition . As Paul feyerabend has opined " philosophers prefer words ". At the end of the day "truth", "God" etc
are words and we realise like witgenstein " there is indeed the inexpressible". As John Gray has said " history is cyclical." So in my opinion , like Joh Gray, progress is a myth and pendulum of history swings between left and right. Right is not so wrong after all. According to John Gray Hitler was a product of enlightenment and was
implementing a project of world improvement. Critics of the right go eloquent about Hitler but remain silent about failed leftist projects.Stalin also massacred 3 million people but left has soft corner for him. I therefore request you to reassess writings of John Gray and tone down your opposition to region.
Posted by: Pradeep Singh | January 20, 2025 at 05:00 AM
Ignore Brian's meaningless and vacuous comment above, and instead listen to this message of hope from Dave Chappelle:
https://youtube.com/shorts/JGBB3cFdjGo?si=_jR4H8cv-QGn9NG9
Thank you Trump for not being a genocidal monster like Biden is.
Posted by: manjit | January 20, 2025 at 05:01 AM
@Brian and other Trump haters,…He plans to sign 200 Executive Orders TODAY, starting immediately after he is sworn in.
So, I “suggest”, ….because of the empathy I still have for Trump haters, you should spare your selves the bitter vitriol you will have for Trump and his new MEGA Administration who will commence the forceable 4 year Golden Age of America.
As for Hitler, …My Dad was an Army Infantry Soldier, drafted at age 24, when I was only 2, and he was sent right to Combat on the front lines in German where he fought German Soldiers until the end of the war. I was always amazed that my only sister married a German , born in America, that had Nazi relatives . There were some interesting discussions around our holiday family gatherings!
But, yes, we should never forget that ‘History is written by the Victors”, which are mostly lies. Several years ago, I traveled all over Germany, including spending a day in Nuremberg, , visiting the Holocaust Museum, and the actual Court Room where the Nuremberg Trial took place. ( Where Scape goats were sentenced to death and hung, while the real Leaders escaped to Argentina and escorted to the U.S. to continue building NASA! The Internet now shares more truth about Hitler and WWII than any of our history books.
So, Trump haters, start putting combinations of your new found Meditation techniques, Zen, , Mushrooms, Weed, and Traquilsers, because if you watch Social Media, it’s gonna be a rough ride the next 100 days watching Trump and his MEGA administration in action.
If you’ve seen Musk’s young excited Son named X,…….just visualize Sant64 jumping up and down , and I being 100 times more excited than X, as we watch Trump in Action. HaHaHaHa
Posted by: Jim Sutherland | January 20, 2025 at 05:37 AM
Yes Manjit,
I agree with you!
Posted by: s* | January 20, 2025 at 05:53 AM
@ Manjit
We all know that Mr. Trump has promised to end the war in Gaza but can you tell us what his motives are and how these are related to the welfare of the people in Gaza?
Posted by: um | January 20, 2025 at 06:01 AM
@ um no, no I can't. And neither can anyone else here.
But that completely misses the 2 primary points here)
1. Trump has ended the slaughter in less than one day. That's the most urgent issue.
2. The genocide was very much a product of Biden's choices. He wasn't an accidental genocider, like I imagine how many ignorant supporters of his would like to delusionaly imagine, he was a chief architect. Trump has never come close to an act as close as possible to "evil" as this act by Biden and the Democrats was.
Posted by: manjit | January 20, 2025 at 06:07 AM
And 3), whatever we may or may not speculate about Trump's motives and how it will effect the Palestinians, which is surely up for debate, I'm quite comfortable with my own opinions and thoughts above that of those who supported genocide Joe, as what I was hinting at, that Biden is the military industrial complex and Zionism's bitch, a murderous war monger and genocider, whilst Trump was an unpredictable wildcard with a more humane aversion to genocide, has come to pass in a far more spectacular fashion than I could ever have hoped for.
On contrary, those who supported Biden and his genocide still haven't come to terms with what's happened right underneath their noses and are completely denying reality by STILL trying to blame Trump for Palestine, and likening him to another genocider in Hitler.
Absolutely clueless.
Posted by: manjit | January 20, 2025 at 06:13 AM
There's a story I my must have told several times over the decades here and RSS, that of the last time I voted....it was for Tony Blair in the very late 90s I believe.
Then they went and waged an obviously injust and barbaric war, based on lies, that resulted in the deaths of up to a million or more innocent citizens, mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, babies....souls.
This resulted in great personal grief, introspection and guilt. I felt truly sickened to my stomach that I was complicit in such unimaginable scales of horror.
Whatever internal dynamics were set in motion by that grief and introspection, it resulted in the outward behaviour of denying the political party and society that I was finally beginning to be proud to be part of, being critical of their lies and hypocrisies and not voting ever again.
This is because I don't care about tribalism, political parties, politics and left v right silliness, I only care about my own values of equality, fairness, empathy, compassion, love, peace, joy and contentment etc. So I cannot chase political parties, I can only chase my best efforts at being a decent human being, or at the very least not "evil".
So how can you vote for a party or president that can kill a million innocent people, or commit a genocide for 15 months when they can end it in 15 minutes?
It is beyond me, quite frankly. But if I may be controversial & perhaps arrogant for a second, but perhaps also why there's so many absolute "failures" (if "progression is even a thing here, from a dualistic pov) on the "spiritual path" despite following a variety of beliefs and practices for decades, when"success" is actually quite easy and natural if the desire is HONEST.
Posted by: manjit | January 20, 2025 at 06:34 AM
Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty that we're free at last!
The interminable, excruciating, ludicrous s show of the last 4 years is finally over. Detected in a landslide. Entirely rejected and repudiated. Progressive liberalism is now relegated to the garbage bin of American history.
What a day! What a next 4 years! I get to enjoy that, and also Brian's unrelieved TDS.
Posted by: sant64 | January 20, 2025 at 06:48 AM
Hitler like or not, what bothers me about Trump is the huge number of lies and mis-information he broadcasts and the nasty way he slates off people who disagreed with him to the extent of threatening judges, lawyers, election officials – and others. He also said he was smart for not paying taxes. None of this endeared me to the man.
Also, I can’t go along with the statement that Biden was responsible for the genocide. He may have been complicit by way of supporting Israel. It seems that the ceasefire was a combination of Biden’s earlier proposal in May and now, Biden’s and Trump’s team in getting it implemented. Yes, maybe Biden could have been more assertive in May – but I guess either way he would have been criticised.
The other thing, I find it almost baffling is the way people support Trump. It’s one thing to support a chosen political party, but to almost worship a particular leader seems really strange. After all, some leaders may say they want to radically change the system but at the end of the day can only operate within the economic and constitutional confines of their democratic system – unless that system itself is changed.
Posted by: Ron E. | January 20, 2025 at 07:09 AM
@ Manjit
Allright .... that all said, what remains is my understanding as I have voiced here before , that as long as there are so to say "christian" countries with governments that represents their voting, especially those powerful ones like the USA, there is no hope for the fate of the Palestinians as they will all let Israel do whatever it pleases to do.
Let me add this, even if it seems not directly related.
The soldiers of the IDA that run the site "Breaking the silence" that report the attrocities of their own army, without finding justifications in the activities of the Palestinians, made it clear that they do so, NOT out of compassion for the Palestinians, or the understanding that the Palestinians are HUMAN like themselves ...NO ... they do NOT ...they do it as these atrocities will have an negative effect upon them and from there it will infect their family and the society at large
You see Manjit, remember what one of the previous Israeli prime ministers said .... Something like .... I abhor the Palestinian parents and government that MAKES us kill their children.
Nobody cares for the fate of the Palestenians ..they only do not want to be seen as people with blood dripping from their hands
Posted by: um | January 20, 2025 at 07:15 AM
"The other thing, I find it almost baffling is the way people support Trump. It’s one thing to support a chosen political party, but to almost worship a particular leader seems really strange."
Not half as strange as the people whose entire political outlook is encapsulated in "Trump is Hitler."
But why should support for Trump be baffling to anyone who's aware of what the Biden democrats supported these last 4 years? Totally open borders allowing in at least 10 million people, and billions of dollars in support of an unwinnable war that might lead to WWIII with Russia. Support for the warped idea that there are multiple genders and that real women have no rights of privacy. Actual threats against the Supreme Court Justices. Efforts to bloat that court with more Justices who will support all democrat initiatives. A total shutdown of American civil society over a virus that only affected the morbidly ill, along with the grave harm done to children by keeping them out of school. Mandating that all gas-powered cars must go. Endless unnecessary regulations choking businesses. Blowing up the economy with rampant spending that caused runaway inflation we still haven't recovered from. A total failure at every single foreign relationship in the Middle East or elsewhere on the globe. Stupid and useless waste of billions to try to fix climate change. Using his Justice Department to try to put his #1 political opponent in prison, as well as imprison and ruin the lives of Republican protestors. Curtailment of free speech under the phony pretext of "combatting misinformation." Pulling out of Afghanistan in a reckless manner that cost the lives of 13 American soldiers. Totally racist identity politics. Pardoning his corrupt-as-hell son and brother. Rhetoric to divide Americans into those who agreed with him and the rest, "garbage." And in general, and on repeated occasions, being far more of a plain nasty human being than Donald Trump ever was. Quite to the contrary, testimonies abound about how Trump personally helped people who were down on their luck. Good luck finding anything along those lines about Biden in his empty 50-year political career.
So yes, people supported Trump way back in 2016 not because he's a fun guy (which he is), but mainly because they did not like the direction of this country, and Donald Trump was the one guy who offered real solutions and who was genuinely for America. So Trump did a great job in 2016 to 20, but then Joe Biden came along and his immeasurably woeful leadership only confirmed, indeed magnified, the utter rot of the progressive democrats in their leadership.
Thank God democracy actually does work in this country.
Posted by: sant64 | January 20, 2025 at 09:42 AM
Trump is ready to,….and chomping at his bits to,….
RELEASE THE KRAKEN!!
And he now, has the Power to do do.
Congrats, #47!
Posted by: Jim Sutherland | January 20, 2025 at 09:57 AM
Everything Democrats and corporate media falsely claimed Trump would do with the pardon power to destroy democracy and the rule of law-- pardon all his family members and all his political allies -- were things Trump didn't do.
They were, however, all things that Biden did. But never mind that, "Trump is Hitler."
Posted by: sant64 | January 20, 2025 at 09:59 AM
10 days ago, Biden said he would only pardon individuals who committed crimes.
If you want to know who the guilty traitors are in our country ... just look at Biden's preemptive pardon list today.
Ashli Babbitt was an Air Force veteran who served this country for 12+ years and won awards for her Iraq service. Ashli was 5'2'', 115 pounds, unarmed. Lt. MICHAEL BYRD shot her in the neck. Biden just pardoned him.
2 full years of every American's life, ruined, thanks to the man who not only gave us covid but imposed insane and useless precautions. Dr. Fauci is one of history's greatest monsters. But Biden pardoned him.
How many crimes has the Biden family committed that Joe Biden feels pardoning all of them is necessary?
Again: 10 days ago, Biden said he would only pardon individuals who committed crimes.
In December 2020, Jake Tapper asked Biden if he'd issue preemptive pardons before leaving office. Biden replied, "You're not going to see me do that."
Well, Biden did do it. What a lie.
And what an absolute joke your "Trump will be Hitler" essay is. Coming after the most corrupt and feckless administration in American history, what an absolute joke.
Posted by: sant64 | January 20, 2025 at 10:27 AM
Incredible. People fawning over Trump In an evangelical manner. He's just a fellah with a particular manner. Whether he will be good for America (and the world being a lead country) remains to be seen.
Some time ago, Spence Tepper left a balanced post listing the good and bad points over the years of both parties when they were in power.
Such is the way in politics, usually when one party has been running the country for a number of years, people vote hoping that a new government will make things better, either more secure or better off.
Posted by: Ron E. | January 20, 2025 at 12:50 PM
Take a break from politics to review my latest Podcast.
https://notebooklm.google.com/notebook/0e1669ca-d129-40e3-ba23-f292e27e1b2a/audio
Posted by: Jim Sutherland | January 20, 2025 at 01:15 PM
This was the Magazine that published my Article on my Peak Meditation experience I shared here, as both a post, and a podcast.
https://www.amazon.com/Out-Body-Travel-Foundation-Journal-ebook/dp/B00585NBQW?ref_=ast_author_dp&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.RgeZkdcCG6REmunQEmYXgnyHGrfw0k4p3v-g-XozD45mZNvHN12vin-zI88intUqxywPp3HLikNj4ND4e_h-L49X1hXgQwJVAb6TxaQvoxtKCQeiG2MctXPJiXeHkJeXbPRbAcY-J4XL--choIFBHD64OPUP4q6fDN9mp977BX8bAiFnkogYnpindnyb77VoqtwiA3k3diMFbpVuO2rU5GJNjWTrZDyE925q3k7Ddzg.LJ7GB_PhA4Bm_WhBVJKqv03Tf__yQJNeUupiR6sTJQU&dib_tag=AUTHOR
Posted by: Jim Sutherland | January 20, 2025 at 02:10 PM
What is Sach Khand? I'm told it's a realm of unalloyed bliss.
In today's magnificent inauguration ceremony, Donald Trump trolled the losers Biden and Harris throughout his whole speech. Trolled them for the terrible job they did. And Biden and Harris, on camera, had to sit there and take it.
This must be what Sach Khand is like!
Aw, you didn't watch the inauguration? Too painful? :/
Btw, nice job calling Trump and his supporters Nazis while hedging that under Trump "the country may thrive." Way to take a stand.
Posted by: sant64 | January 20, 2025 at 03:40 PM
I have been visualizing Pres. Donald J. Trump’s Image carved in to Mt. Rushmore, along with the other most remembered U.S. Presidents.
Perhaps I won’t live long enough to see it manifest, but those younger readers here might witness it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Rushmore
Posted by: Jim Sutherland | January 20, 2025 at 04:26 PM
"Germany surviving Hitler doesn't reassure me about Trump"
Oh yes, Germany surviving Hitler, and thriving even, was just happenstance. That is, not quite happenstance: but certainly not a given, far from it. And in any case, that survival happened barely, back then; and the thriving came well after. At the time, it came as close to destruction as makes little difference.
And, importantly: The spirit of Germany was destroyed much before its body was destroyed (to be subsequently remade again). The malignancy that was Hitlerism saw to that.
As is the case with the US now, with Trumpism running amok.
It's amusing to see the infected zombies running loose right here, their always-feeble intellects and their always-shaky grasp of reality both completely gone now, like completely.
Amusing, sure, but at the same time depressing as well.
Welcome to the age of Caliban.
Posted by: Appreciative Reader | January 20, 2025 at 04:47 PM
Trump is God and Biden is God. You are all Gods. You just used your imagination differently to create your world. Some imagine piles of money or power.
Some violate the do no harm rule. They still are Gods sent down to create.
Posted by: Jimmy | January 20, 2025 at 06:27 PM
@Jimmy,….no one is THE ONE GOD.
John 10:35,…” Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?”
Notice small g, not capital G.
So, again, challenges the Advaita Oneness theory that we are all God. We are all micro gods in the Macro God.
We are many in the ONE , as well as one of the many.
We are one of the many , not ONE.
We could be compared to Individual grains of sand on the beaches and deserts.
Posted by: Jim Sutherland | January 21, 2025 at 05:21 AM
"Welcome to the age of Caliban."
AR,
Shakespearean reference or portmanteau of Christian and Taliban?
Posted by: umami | January 21, 2025 at 06:45 AM
"We could be compared to individual grains of sand on the beaches and deserts."
That doesn't reflect the reality that science and direct observation shows. A better and more accurate analogy is that we are all waves of the one ocean.
The obvious problem with religious texts is that they not only reflect the cultural thinking of their time, in accepting them blindly they also prevent direct experience of seething things as they actually are.
Posted by: Ron E. | January 21, 2025 at 09:03 AM
@RonE,…which one of the 17 Exoplanet ones are are you one of?
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/ace9b6
Posted by: Jim Sutherland | January 21, 2025 at 09:39 AM
"AR,
Shakespearean reference or portmanteau of Christian and Taliban?"
Oh, Shakespeare, umami.
But you're right, the Chistian + Taliban portmanteau works too! Even though that hadn't occurred to me, at all. Very cool, for you to think of that!👍
(Even if the latter allusion would be way more specific, restricted, limited, than I'd intended. I'd meant it more broadly, to include that sense, but not limited to it.)
Posted by: Appreciative Reader | January 21, 2025 at 09:49 AM
Wow! Take a look:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/
Posted by: sant64 | January 21, 2025 at 10:44 AM
JS the 82 psalm-I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
Trump is a perfect example. He acts as if he is a God. He never admits a mistake. He believes in his position so much.
We are all Gods but don't know how to apply our imagination to achieve our goals like Donald or even Elon.
They have the faith of the mustard seed writ across our lives.
Louise Berlay wrote a book in the 90's called magic of the mind. It is on youtube now.
Cheers!
Posted by: Jimmy | January 21, 2025 at 08:10 PM
Wow! Take a look:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/
Posted by: sant64 | January 21, 2025 at 10:44 AM
Thank you sant64, and Manjit, I agree with you!
Posted by: La Madrugada | January 21, 2025 at 11:13 PM
To those that rejoice in the cease fire and the election of the new american president and are concerned about the welfare of the inhabitants of Gaza...... Do you realy think that these things will end the suffering of those inhabitants, let alone the amelioration of their lifes to the same standards as those that live in Israel?
Do you really believe that this cease fire has anything to do with compassion for the inhabitants of Gaza?? Do you????
Let me remind you of what I came to understand from reading the site "Breaking the silence" of those military whistleblowers that spoke up about the misconduct of their own army against the inhabitants of the Occupied territories, without justifications.
Their motivation to do so, was not at all inspired by the notion that these inhabitants are humans like themselves or compassion for their suffering ...no, not at all. They were motivated by the real fear that those that inflicted these misconducts on others would it the end bring it into their own homes, their own families and in doing so corrupt the whole nation
This cease fire is not at all in the interests of the inhabitants. The world cannot longer stand the excessive retaliation and for that reason they will stop ..stop with THAT form and they will come up with new ways to do the same as they have done with torture. The physical torture that leaves marks on the body is no longer acceptable to the world ... as we civilized people know better ...but did this stop torture?? Not at all friends, not at all, we use now methods that leave no traces on the body ..but those that use these means know that these "civilized" methods are even more cruel .
Nobody is interested in the welfare of the inhabitants of these territories ....Nobody
And certainly not those that raise their voices.
Ask your self......... WHY ..WHY ...WHY
Posted by: um | January 22, 2025 at 07:27 AM
@um,….Those Palestinians must be having Jewish light dropped on them, disguised as bombs and Missiles shot from Drones. This Rabbi believes Jews have the real Light, not Christians, or others.
https://youtu.be/R73dh0qLYIQ?si=4Cwcx0xrAj6S1TVX
I just recently have been exposed to him, on YouTube shorts. He seems to be the current Jewish Pharisee Rabbi opposing Christians.
No matter what fraction of an inch we lean, away from the center, that puts us on the wrong side of the opposing side, so none of us will ever win.
Thanks for the Book Title. I found it in pdf, down loaded it, and am reading it.
No real new surprises . War is hell , and innocent civilians are always the slaughtered. At least the IDF soldiers try to hide their atrocities, unlike the Taliban, who cut people’s heads off on TV and the Internet for show.
Posted by: Jim Sutherland | January 22, 2025 at 08:39 AM
https://www.youtube.com/live/bDLUalZNKdE?si=N2can4I3hADyU2WO
The Pharisee Rabbi opposing The Christian New Testament
He, as many before him, will fall, because as his own Bible recorded,….”Pride comes before The Fall.”
Posted by: Jim Sutherland | January 22, 2025 at 08:45 AM
@ Jim S.
I referred to a site not a book.
https://www.breakingthesilence.org.il/
Posted by: um | January 22, 2025 at 09:23 AM
@ Jim S.
While making coffee, having seen a part of the last video you refereed to , that everybody has personal reasons to be involved in religion.
It is my understanding that in the days of Christ, those that listened to them, let us say on the mount, had no interest in his words as pastors these days.
People that go to church do not go there for any theological interest.
Why would a person pray to and worship a god if he was nor in need of something, something related to this world and his live in it. ...no theological interest at all.
And ...all religions are man made and serve them for a whiule and than perish.
For new interest new religions will be born.
We are in the end phase of the abrahanic religions ..and those that believe in it will kill and be killed for their identification with it.
Posted by: um | January 22, 2025 at 10:04 AM
Um,…according to that Rabbi, who lives in Jerusalem right now, and has a very large Youtube presence, says they will be re-establishing the Temple Mount soon, so they can return to sacrificing animals.
Must be planned after they run out of Palestinians to sacrifice. But at least, they don’t eat the Palestinians they sacrifice.
Maybe Organ harvesting?
Posted by: Jim Sutherland | January 22, 2025 at 10:18 AM
@ Jim S.
The concept of "god" has always been used to justify human actions.
With the decline of these religions, there will also come an end to that practice.
There is no god that is interested in human affairs but there are humans that make him seen so.
It pains me to realize that this will all cause rivers of blood and that there is no power in the world, not even God, if he existed, that can stop it from happening.
Again ...as an example ... the american government could have made other choices to end the war with Japan. Out of all possibilities they chose the most cruel ..not once but twice.
That is going on as in the occupied territories. The are always countering the numbers. The wounded and the death but my eyes are on the collateral information.
The amount of destruction of infra structure ....and the ..WHY.
Nor am I focused on the state of Israel but look at the collateral information of the nations that stand there was their hands on their backs watching to unfold the biblical misery.
They are all afraid of their biblical god
Posted by: um | January 22, 2025 at 10:43 AM
LOve is the th need and feel to make
other Souls happier than Yourself
I agree with almost everybody above
about what is Love's oppositesit is :
Manjit s movie:
'This film is what we do to each other as human beings," he said. "We see others as lesser than ourselves, different from ourselves. Somehow, step by step, that leads to atrocity."
86 yrs to gp 4 nasa"s HALVED APOPHIS to settle all this
Posted by: 8 | January 22, 2025 at 12:50 PM
"Love is the the need and feel to make
other Souls happier than Yourself"
8
This great comment almost inspired me to write a serious post, one of my long, rambling screeds, a blast from the past.
Almost.
Posted by: manjit | January 23, 2025 at 05:51 AM
Biden pardons his whole family. And now we learn more about the millions of dollars that went into that family courtesy of slimy political shenanigans.
Blanket pardons, for people not yet charged with crimes. "Oh, we had to do it because Donald Trump." Right. Right right right.
Even freakin Newsweek, the most respected middle-of-the-road news periodical, is saying that Biden's pardons are *far* worse than Trump's. https://www.newsweek.com/sorry-bidens-pardons-are-much-worse-trumps-opinion-2018843
Does this guy know that Biden pardoned over 8000 people? That's more than any other president. Far more. It included cop killers.
So of course, he's thinking "January 6th!" Jan 6 is the Holy Day for all progressives, the most important day in American history. Oh my GOD, how progressives luv Jan 6! The same people who despise the 4th of July because they hate America dance with joy over Jan 6.
January 6th was really no big deal, and I'm glad everyone was finally set free. It doesn't bother me that a few of them were violent. They all went to prison long enough. Progressives would like to keep them in prison forever. Progressives want to ruin the lives of anyone who's not a progressive. The last 4 years are proof of that.
Progressives like this guy wax hysteric over January 6th. "Oh, you all should hang your heads in shame!" Funny how the 2 years of BLM riots escape their fine-tuned moral notice. Billions of dollars of damage. Countless small businesses ruined. Over a thousand people injured, some killed. Progressives like this guy don't give a fuck. The only thing in their moral universe is Donald J. Trump and the people who voted for him.
Doesn't matter that when everything is added up, the progressives are guilty of an astounding amount of harm. Riots, importing illegal criminals into the country by the millions, censorship, using the justice department to persecute political opponents. using family members as agents for ill gotten gain from foreign agents, needlessly closing schools for over a year (a generation deeply wounded, throwing away billions on climate change measures that did nothing, throwing away more billions on reckless spending that caused debt we may never recover from. Throwing away billions on an unwinnable war in Ukraine.
It's almost comical when this guy plays Mr. Moral Giant and lectures everyone, not a progressive to "hand their head in shame."
Hang my head in shame? After the wanton damage to my country that your side has done? That you condoned?
Useless I know. Tell this to him and the other progressives and their eyes glaze over, as they intone the mantra "January 6th,....January 6th..."
Anyway, the J 6ers, they're all free now. Free! That really shouldn't bother you given that over 90% of the BLM rioters were set free, set free even sans charges.
Trump is president and he is kicking ass. All the phony legal charges against him have failed. All that oh so very lame "Trump is Hilter" rhetoric horribly failed, although I have no doubt we'll hear it again from him.
Posted by: sant64 | January 23, 2025 at 07:00 PM
From X: Just one fragment of the pack of lies we were told about the criminality of the people who participated in January 6th.
I picked a J6 case at random to review because I wanted to see how bad it was.
And let me tell you the random one I picked did not disappoint. This defendant went into the capital and walked down the corridor. He was not accused of violence. He did not break anything. He did not hurt anybody. He was sentenced by a jury to 19 months in prison he was overcharged by the prosecutor to the point where it should be called malicious prosecution, and a judge rubber stamped every single thing the prosecutor asked for.
The most egregious part of these filings was that the government introduced a 22 minute video montage that spliced together key breaches that occurred that day.
They introduced that video to a jury even when the defendant in question is only shown on that video for less than 60 seconds.
The defendant in question was not violent. He was walking through a hallway in the capital building with the crowd, he looked like it was a walking tour in the picture still shot.
The remaining 21 minutes, shows the most violent portions of the event spliced together.
Luckily, this defendant seems to have had competent attorneys who filed a motion to exclude this video. The defendant’s lawyers argued that this video montage is highly prejudicial because it shows a jury a 22 minute video where all they see are the most extreme parts of the whole day, but the defendant in question is only on that videotape for six seconds and is seen walking around peacefully.
Further, attorneys for the defendant argued that the majority of the jury in Washington DC is made of a federal employees. This video is meant to inflame a jury, it has no probative value, and therefore is a violation of federal rule of evidence 401 (which by the way they teach like on the first day of criminal procedure in law school).
District Court Judge Bates declined the motion and allowed the prosecutor to include the video montage.
I would be willing to bet everything I own that submitting a 22 minute video montage that shows the most egregious acts of violence you can find from that day when the defendant in question is on that video for only six seconds and is seen walking calmly is highly prejudicial and a violation of the defendants due process rights.
This person was found guilty and sentenced to 19 months in prison.
Let me repeat that again, this person got 19 months in prison for walking through the capital for 8 minuets.
It took me two hours to read through all of the documents that were in this case file. Every motion submitted by the defendant was denied, and every motion submitted by the government was granted.
They turned a trespass misdemeanor that would have result in a $50 ticket into a 5 misdemeanors and a felony charge by charging the defendant with a statute that would have required the Secret Service to rope off the section he was in, which they did not, they also charged him with a statute that would have required them to prove Mike Pence was in the building at the time he walked through that corridor, he was not, and finally they used an Enron statue that the Supreme Court struck down.
This defendant had to spend two years and probably hundreds of thousands of dollars in attorneys fees for spending 20 minutes in the building and walking through the corridors.
And this is just the first case I dug into.
Imagine if we had the time to dig into the details of each and every single one of these cases, read all the filings and compile a report on the amount of due process violations that were committed. You know it’s called journalism. Something that only Julie Kelly and a small few others seem to understand how to do as it relates to J6.
People need to see the inside of jail cells. This is so far beyond prosecutorial discretion. This is straight up political persecution. But the biggest problem here are the judges that rubber stamped all of it.
-------------------------------------------
This is just one person who was railroaded by Biden's justice department.
Posted by: sant64 | January 23, 2025 at 07:22 PM
When crime succeeds, it is called virtue.
Seneca
Posted by: Spence Tepper | January 24, 2025 at 11:36 AM
@ Spence
You mean, that the crimes against the inhabitants of Gaza and the west bank, are for that reason [biblical, divine ordered] VIRTUES?!
Posted by: um | January 24, 2025 at 12:34 PM
@ Santo Ji
Things are what they are
seldom what they look like
let alone how they are made seen
made seen by humans
made seen by republicans
made seen by democrats.
HUMANS, Santo Ji do these things ..not democrats or republicans, that are just empty conceptual identifications.
Anyway .. enjoy as long as you can.
Posted by: um | January 24, 2025 at 12:41 PM
Spence!
um,
I think he meant it critically along the lines of "History is written by the victors."
More Seneca:
"Why do people not confess vices? It is because they have not yet laid them aside. It is a waking person only who can tell their dreams."
Posted by: umami | January 24, 2025 at 08:56 PM
Trump is completely outperforming Biden with actual help for North Carolina and California.
He's only been in office a week, and Trump has already done more for people than Biden did these last 4 years. Which isn't saying much.
Don't anymore ever say that the Democrats are the party of the common man. It was a big mistake to base your party's mission on climate change, death to Trump, and rights for sexual deviants.
Posted by: sant64 | January 25, 2025 at 09:25 AM
@ Santo Ji
I heard on tv that YOUR president is also "helping" the inhabitants of Gaza to solve their problems by suggesting that they should take refuge in the neighboring arabiic countries so that the whole thing can be "cleaned up" neatly ....and mind you ...just after having listened to a commemoration ceremony on tv for the holocaust victims ...where speakers stressed that this commemoration should go on and on so that the same could never happen again .... the fate of the European Jews and Roma started with the "suggestion" that they should emigrate, go elsewhere
Have a look an shiver:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vbz4rqHZag
Posted by: um | January 26, 2025 at 06:22 AM
READ IT ..SANTO JI ...READ, READ
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/25/politics/trump-gaza-strip-jordan-egypt/index.html
READ
what .."helping" MEANS
FROM YOUR PRESIDENT
AND
WHO IS HELPED WITH WHAT
Israel had to take action after the massacre that led to this war but out of the many available possibility THIS whar chosen what you see on these video's ... 40.000 people killed ..read it, read it ...40.000 and a complete area where more than a million piople have to live is destroyed
Ask your self if this even is retaliation according biblical law ..one eye for one eye ....
Does the massacre of 1200 civilians and the destruction of one village justify that?
Or should this be labeled otherwise.
And the most miserable is that the whole world is standing there looking and probably also rejoicing
Posted by: um | January 26, 2025 at 06:39 AM
Senile Zionist Biden = Billions of US tax payer money sent to the genocidal ethno state of Israel to slaughter tens, probably hundreds of thousands of innocent people. Last installment of 8 billion dollars confirmed in mid January 2025 as a final act to seal Genocide Joe's legacy.
Narcissist imbecile Trump = a pretend cessation to the slaughter whilst continuing genocide Joe and barbaric, imperialist US's policies of putting Israel first by committing genocide and ethnic cleansing. Says resumption of shipments of 2000lb bomb's to slaughter more brown babies by the thousands is justifiable because "they paid for them". Doesn't mention that money was taken from US tax payers (on Biden's orders) then sent to Israel to "pay for" America's greatest export, instruments of death and destruction.
US citizens = a deeply sick society full of generally ignorant, uniformed, arrogant, American exceptionalism fantasy believing cuckolds who think their duopoly is a democracy and that the Zionist policy of Israel first, and America being the biggest and most cruel "terrorist" country or organisation on earth isn't a thing. Happy to have sub standard healthcare, not help their own citizens during natural disasters etc, happy to send hundreds of billions of dollars of PUBLIC tax payer money for overseas wars, ethnic cleansing and genocide, just as long as they get to watch NFL, MLB, Hollywood, eat at McDonald's and get to participate in the 4 yearly clown show called the presidential election to give them the illusion of some sort of control.
Arms manufactures = ecstatic at the stupidity of the masses.
Zionists = remain bloodthirsty until absolutely everybody in the world is dead, or at least killing someone else.
Palestinians = dehumanised, slaughtered, forgotten.
Humanity = broken.
God = ?
Posted by: manjit | January 26, 2025 at 07:12 AM
Trump is exceeding even the wildest expectations of his supporters. Yes, and that includes the LA fires situation, which someone here opined that "Trump doesn't care." You're going to see a lot of liberal California go red after the moves Trump has made to help the fire victims -- and no, we now know it wasn't climate change that caused the LA fires; it was green policies that saved tiny fish and forest undergrowth and left hydrants dry. The people of LA aren't stupid and aren't buying the "it was climate change" excuse for this.
Admittedly disturbing is news that Trump is trying to get neighboring ME countries to take in Palestinians. On the face of it, I don't like it as it's too much like ethnic cleansing and a finalization of Israel's land theft. On the other hand, the realpolitik of the situation leads me to think that any solution that stops the further death of so many innocents may be for the best.
Posted by: sant64 | January 26, 2025 at 01:37 PM
Dear Sant64, if I may summarise:
Ethnic cleansing ain't good, unless it's Trump advocating for it, in which case it's realpolitik and fine by me!
Nice. Knock yourself out!
Posted by: manjit | January 26, 2025 at 03:13 PM
"After just a week of the Trump presidency, I'm politically depressed. It's what Trump is doing, and will do, that deeply bothers me. Because there's no central Democratic response to Trump, I came up with a great idea for the Democratic Party that would make me feel better, along with countless other Americans. I describe it in this blog post. I visualize someone like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez being a spokesperson for entertaining brief videos about Trump's actions."
Mr. Hines (from his Facebook rant page) is too funny.
Why? Let's look at recent events in Los Angeles.
That city was totally unprepared for fires. Fire dept funds were cut in half. Hundred fire trucks sitting idle because the Democrat leaders didn't want to pay for repairs. The water reservoir
was empty, literally empty! Hydrants were far too few, like 1000 ft apart. Many of the hydrants that did exist were dry when needed. That kinda didn't help. Democrat leaders cared more about DEI "We have a lesbian fire chief, hooray!" In every instance, the democrat government of one of the richest areas of the US was studiously unprepared for fire. To top it off, the chief dem leader, Mayor Karen Bass, was in Africa for some reason, AFTER being told that fire risk was at an all-time high.
So Trump, who Brian so despairs of, comes to LA and provides the half-assed help that Biden phoned in. What does Trump do? He holds a press conference that included LA Mayor Bass and we find out that democrat run LA wasn't about to let people rebuild their homes. Oh no! It turned out that democrat run LA bureaucrats wanted everyone who lost a home to wait a full year and a half so government busybodies could justify their jobs and "keep everyone safe."
Trump would have none of this and told Bass to make things happen now.
Imagine losing your home, that's bad enough, Then being told by the democrats in charge that no, you can't rebuild, you can't even clear your lot, you can't even go to your demolished home. You must wait 18 months and then, maybe, the progressives will let you rebuild. Meanwhile, you're still making mortgage payments and have no place to live.
With Trump in charge, all this green progressive controlling nonsense won't be tolerated.
But Brian is "politically depressed" about such positive changes, progress that Biden or Kamala wouldn't deign to do in a million years. Jeez.
Posted by: sant64 | January 27, 2025 at 02:15 PM
https://youtube.com/shorts/hzCwAZGLgP8?si=XidOyZCCYBTlWauY
Preach, sister.
Posted by: manjit | January 28, 2025 at 12:18 PM